(© goodreads)
(© goodreads)
‘The Immortal Rules’
by Julie Kagawa
Blood of Eden # 1
Synopsis:
Allison Sekemoto survives in the Fringe, the outermost circle of a vampire city. By day, she and her crew scavenge for food. By night, any one of them could be eaten.
Some days, all that drives Allie is her hatred of them. The vampires who keep humans as blood cattle. Until the night Allie herself is attacked—and given the ultimate choice. Die… or become one of the monsters.
Faced with her own mortality, Allie becomes what she despises most. To survive, she must learn the rules of being immortal, including the most important: go long enough without human blood, and you will go mad… (Source: Goodreads.com)
My thoughts about the book:
Is it enough if I say: ‘I LOVE this book‘???
No – this wouldn’t be hardly enough! ;)
I must confess that I had a longer reading stagnation before this book, in which I preferred to watch TV or make something else rather than reading my books. But then I’ve got this book in my hands and everything was blown away like nothing. This book has reminded me again of why I love reading so much and how intensely one can get pulled in another world and can feel for book characters.
I don’t need to tell you again about the great writing style of Kagawa anymore, or?! It’s wonderful with enchanting descriptions of the surroundings, the feelings and thoughts of the characters but it’s never to overload and exactly properly. She catches incredibly well the emotions of her figures and hence lets the reader amazingly well be part of the events and the internal struggles. *great*
I don’t want to tell anything at all about the plot because I don’t want to ruin the tension for you, but I can say that it was a great experience to read this book. It was stirring throughout the book and an absolute page-turner which has tied me up from first to the last page.
Though some things were a little bit foreseeable, but this hasn’t disturbed me at all because Kagawa has made it nevertheless to hold always the tension and the story never let me go.
For example, the thing with Stick was without big surprise because his character was shown from the beginning to be week and easily to manipulate. The same was with Kanin, who only appeared in a short part in the beginning, but who even though has left an impression on me and also his ‚story’ at the end I’ve saw it coming before it happened.
The best in the book was that I was so enthusiastic by the main character Allison, briefly called Allie, and I’ve hoped and felt with her throughout the book and I liked her because she was strong and thoughtful all the time.
Certainly she had also her weaker sides for example when she was striving for the blood of the people around her or when she had hide from her internal conflicts and shoved them away in this part. But this hasn’t disturbed me particularly because it was understandable. Allie has grown up in a world where it’s only about the naked survival and there it is no wonder that she also rather pushes her feelings and grief and confusion aside during the plot and simply continues; one step after the other to survive. Hence I’m quite sure that the grieve work and the processing of her feelings will take an important part in the second book and I’m already looking forward to it!
The other characters in the book were many and most of them I’ve also grown fond of but which also have led to grief and emotional turmoil. Besides Allie I’ve liked the most of course the two men in the story, or also the little Taylor – he was just too cute. :)
With the boys or men of the story I’ve to struggle with myself to and it’s a really hard decision whom I’ve liked more or with whom I think that Allie should end up. Usually I can recognize very soon the preference of the author or often I see it coming properly who will be together at the end with the main protagonist and takes the role of the main male character. But here it is really difficult, particularly because I can’t really choose for myself. On the one hand I strongly suppose that Zeke will make it because of the way Kagawa described him and constantly wrote about his appearance – as well as she did with Ash in the Iron Fey series. This she hasn’t done at all with Kanin and I still don’t know exactly he looks like, only that he has dark eyes, not more. Moreover he presents himself rather cautiously and mysteriously and therefore the reader doesn’t know much about him, because he just tells nothing. But he has something that doesn’t let go me, and to tell the truth, also fascinates me even more than perfect Zeke, who always does everything for others, is kind and clever and looks good. Kanin is different; dark and mysterious and he shows his character only with his actions, although he has a bad opinion about himself.
Oh I just don’t know… But I think I’m a little more for Kanin, although I think that Zeke will be become the ‘jack of hearts’. *though*though*
Who of you has already read the book? What do you think with whom Allie ends up and who of them do you like more or find more interesting? I’m curious about your opinions! :)
© imlovingbooks.com
© imlovingbooks.com
Cover:
A fantastic cover which is a real eye-catcher and which I always like to look at. Especially great is the bright white writing which almost glows, the red tear and also the slightly shining, reflecting border.
All in all:
A wonderful book in which story one would like to be part of, although it plays in a life-menacing world in which all hope is lost. Nevertheless, one would like to be present because the story is so thrilling and one gets fond of the characters and care for them very fast.
Rating:
5 of 5 points
My Recommendation:
to BUY!
For Fans of:
YA, Fantasy, Mystery, Vampires, Dystopias
Quotes:
Allie: “The mighty hunter. He can take down viciousrabids and rampaging boars, but one old lady can make him flee in terror.”
Zeke: “One scary old lady. You didn’t hear what she told me when I got up— you’re so cute I could put you in a pie. Tell me that’s not the creepiest thing you’ve ever heard.” His voice climbed a few octaves, turning shrill and breathy. “Today for dessert, we have apple pie, blueberry pie and Ezekiel pie.
Kanin: “There will come a time when man is no longer concerned only with survival, when he will once more be curious as to who came before him, what life was like a thousand years ago, and he will seek out answers for a hundred years or so, but humans’ curiosity has always driven them to find answers.”
Allison: “You don’t dwell on what you’ve lost, you just move on.”
